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Visual distress beacon lets screams be heard in space

IN SPACE, as we know, no one can hear you scream. With this in mind, an optical distress beacon is being developed for astronauts working outside their spacecraft. The device could provide an alert if an astronaut is unable to speak or radio links fail.

Extra-vehicular activities are becoming more common – in 2007 there were 23 EVAs involving International Space Station crew members, for example, more than double the figure for 2005.

The distress beacon will be attached to sensors monitoring heartbeat or breathing, and will have LEDs visible up to 800 metres away. “The astronaut might even flash them …